Charleston (Dramatic Irony)
At the graduation party in the gym, Mary and George do the Charleston exuberantly, as the floor of the gym opens up to reveal the pool beneath. While the crowds around them can see the danger they are in and scream out in fear, Mary and George remain clueless, believing that the crowd is cheering because they are so good at dancing. In this moment, the viewer and the other attendees of the dance know something that George and Mary do not, to rather comic effect.
"George Bailey, I’ll love you until the day I die" (Dramatic Irony)
When they are children, Mary and George talk to each other at the drugstore where George works. George leans over to pick something up, and Mary whispers in his ear, "George Bailey, I’ll love you until the day I die." While this seems like a major confession on Mary's part, she makes sure that she is saying it in his deaf ear. The viewer knows that Mary is in love with George, but George has no idea.
Gower's Tragedy (Dramatic Irony)
In one of the early scenes, George sees a piece of mail that Gower got that day telling him that his son died while away at college. In this moment, George and the viewer know some personal details about Gower's life, but Gower does not know we know. George then notices that Gower has accidentally put some poison into a prescription. This moment constitutes another instance of dramatic irony, in which we (and George) know something that Gower and the other characters do not know. This dramatic irony creates higher stakes in the narrative.
Potter has the $8,000 (Dramatic Irony)
When Uncle Billy goes to the bank to deposit $8,000 to the Building and Loan account, he accidentally slips it into a newspaper that Potter is reading. The viewer watches as Potter discovers the money and realizes that it belongs to the Bailey Building and Loan, but then says nothing. The viewer is privy to the fact that Potter is behaving completely unethically, but George has no idea, which creates yet another instance of dramatic irony.
Broke
George tells the bank examiner that the Building & Loan is broke as the man is coming in to examing their books. The man thinks it's a bad joke, but ironically George is telling the truth and the guy doesn't get it one bit.
